CLEVELAND, Ohio - You have to like a trade show where every few booths has a bucket of beers on ice, ready for the taking.

The Ohio Craft Brewers Association held its annual convention in Cleveland, offering seminars on topics ranging from glycol piping design considerations to carbonation and nitrogenation techniques.

The 10-year-old non-profit group counts almost 400 breweries in its fold, lobbying on their behalf while promoting the industry.

Communications manager Justin Hemminger said more than 600 people participated in this year's gathering, about 100 more than last year's in Cincinnati. The previous two conventions were in Dayton and Wooster. He said 100 exhibitors signed up this year as compared to 55 last year.

* Soon you'll be seeing more Goldhorn Brewery taps throughout the region. Last year the East Side brewery signed a deal with Beverage Distributors, and production is being ramped up, says owner Rick Semersky. He said the brewery is looking to triple its draft distribution along with making a "serious can push." Currently Polka City Pilsner and Dead Man's Curve India Pale Ale are out in cans.

* Ohio Brewing Co. is currently in limbo between its former home in Akron's Highland Square neighborhood and its future, larger one in Cuyahoga Falls. Owner Chris Verich said the brewery is contracting via Elevator Brewing Co. in Columbus. Ohio Brewing's Double Irish Red is expected on the market the third week of February. Verich is busy getting the new 15-barrel brewhouse up and running at 2250 Front St. Target opening is spring, around Memorial Day, he said. An arcade room is planned for the basement.

* Seems like yesterday Barn Talk Hops made news collaborating with Market Garden Brewery on an ale brewed with hops from its Wadsworth farm. "We just put in three more acres," Mike Napier said at the convention, "and we have orders of 5,000 to 6,000 more planned." Mike and his wife Jenny planted 8,000 to 10,000 hop plants in 2016. They are working with seven to eight breweries right now.

* In December 2015, the father-son duo Craig and Andrew Martahus started the city's first malt house since Prohibition. The Martahuses' operation on Carnegie Avenue nurtures grains, and the process allows brewers a chance to order exactly what they want. Now, Craig says, they have at least 50 clients. Could they have envisioned such a fast growth? "Honestly, yes," Craig said. "I thought folks could embrace it. What has pleased us is we're starting to get some production breweries. Great Lakes and Jackie O's are in discussion with Haus Malts, he said.

* The Cleveland Brew Bus usually ferries partygoers and various groups between breweries, but business was stepped up a bit this week. Leslie Basalla-McCafferty and Brian McCafferty ran the bus for attendees, which meant hours of shuttling between the Cleveland Marriott Downtown and more than a dozen Cleveland breweries. The OCBA has employed shuttle routes at its annual convention, a great idea for craft-beer folks to safely check out the brewing scene. And the McCaffertys are a good choice here, considering their knowledge of the local brewing industry.